Alex’s Special Message About Fathers

I remember when “Happy Father’s Day!” wasn’t so happy for me.

Hi, I’m Alex McLellan with Josh McDowell Ministry. I was three years old when my non-Christian parents got divorced, and my sister and I went to live with my mother. For the next six years, Happy Father’s Day wasn’t so happy. I’ve shared many times that my parents eventually became Christians and got remarried — to each other! However, as wonderful as it was to again have my dad in my life, I couldn’t get those years back. For six years, six important years, I grew up with a distant dad.

Can Our View of Our Earthly Father Skew Our View of God?

I understand why people carry the dysfunction of their family into the future, carry the dysfunction of an earthly father into their relationship with God — our loving Heavenly Father.

However, I didn’t grow up thinking my Heavenly Father would also leave me or keep His distance. Instead, I only knew any shortcoming of my earthly father was a shortcoming because I had a deeper sense of the way things ought to be — the way a father ought to be.

I carried this understanding into my relationship with my Heavenly Father, knowing He would be the ultimate father I was looking for, the kind who would never leave or let me down. The Bible says our Heavenly Father is the only one who meets the ultimate standard — because He is the standard!

On Father’s Day, I’m so thankful for my earthly father. He was a wonderful man who brought so much into my life. But he wasn’t there for me the way God always is. I don’t know what kind of father you have, but you, too, need to know that your Heavenly Father is the only father who will never leave you or let you down.

Because of this truth, we all can say, “Happy Father’s Day!”

Alex

P.S. Are you a parent? We have two free resources for YOU!

Josh has spoken to over 25 million people in 125 countries. He has spent years researching and teaching on the role of fatherhood. His research, which we’ve compiled into a report titled The Father Factor, is our free gift to you. It will give you tools you need to build loving and lasting relationships with your children. It will strengthen the foundation for your family. Read the report now!

And Josh has recorded short parenting videos in which he shares with you the valuable tips he learned while parenting his own kids. Josh’s seven tips cover the topics of Affirmation, Acceptance, Appreciation, Availability, Affection, Approach Their World, and Accountability. Check out the videos!

In our next post in this Journey Together series, Josh shares a special Father’s Day message with you!